Smooth
by Lios-a
Summary: "We make it a point of defending the innocent here, Mr Stark."


_A/N:_ Pure silliness. Procrastination level 10,000%, avoiding all of my problems and piggy-backing on the Marvel induced euphoria of Daredevil and the release of Ultron (which we shall not speak of). Watching the show my mind would not stop jumping to the possibility of a Stark/Murdock meeting and how (not)well that would go down... Anyway, for your pleasure. I hope you enjoy.

Some swearing, no Avenger spoilers, a brief hint at the finale of Daredevil and a reference to Stardust (because a part of me has been in love with Charlie Cox since 2007).

* * *

 **Smooth**

* * *

They had three full minutes warning.

Matt had abandoned his cane by his desk and leapt into the corridor upon hearing Karen's yelp and the sound of her rapid heartbeat. The weeks had been quiet since Fisk's arrest, but they were all still on edge, Karen probably the most. In his haste, he knocked his knee into a wall, resulting in a bang and losing him the element of stealthy surprise. It also drew Foggy out of his office and swearing into the hallway, brandishing an empty bottle of wine as a weapon.

A shaky, nerve-filled laugh from Karen put him a little at ease, informing him that she was not in immediate danger but was still not at all comfortable in the situation. He threw his head in the direction he knew Foggy was standing in and raised his eyebrows visibly.

"Um, tall beefy older guy in a suit," his partner muttered. "He's just kind of staring at us."

"I'm sorry to have given you a fright, Miss," came the deep voice, steady and calm in a way that Matt imagined was professional. "The door was open downstairs so I assumed I could walk freely in."

"It's ok, I was j-just a bit surprised," she replied, moving over to stand closer to Matt. She put a hand on his arm and squeezed lightly. "Can we help you, sir?"

"Yes, I think so. My employers are seeking legal advice and I merely came in first to survey the area. I'm part of their security detail, can't be too careful these days."

"Of course not," said Foggy, sounding extremely confused.

"You would be the lawyers, Nelson and Murdock?" the man asked, gesturing a hand back and forth between Matt and Foggy.

Matt nodded and reached out a hand for the man to grasp. It was shaken immediately and when the warmth left his skin he heard the man making a similar greeting with Foggy. "We are. May I ask who you represent?"

The tone of the bodyguard changed, indicating to Matt that he was now smiling. "Of course, sir. That would be Stark Industries."

* * *

The man left the office with the promise of bringing back his boss, arguably the most famous man in the United States. The three friends stood in the hallway where they had met the bodyguard, gaping at each other.

"Ok, someone pinch me," started Foggy, running both his hands through his hair and shaking it forcefully. "Did he or did he not just say that Tony _fucking_ Stark is coming in here now in like ten seconds to ask us, _US_ , for legal advice?! Ow, Karen!"

"You asked for it!"

"I was joking!"

"Guys, please," said Matt, letting out a shaky breath. "What on earth could Stark possibly want with us?"

"Maybe he's heard that we're kickass avocados. What? Don't look at me all sassy like that, it could happen."

"Maybe he's interested because of our work with Fisk?" suggested Karen, her voice still shaking but this time more with excitement than fear. "Oh my god, do you think Pepper Potts will be with him? She's my girl crush. That woman _kicks ass_."

"Oh-kay Karen, time to climb off the freaky stalker train and calm down."

"Shut up, Foggy!"

"Look, guys, we are professionals. We probably have about a minute before they come in here and billionaire or not we are going to be the epitome of calm and collected and just do our job."

"You're not gonna, like, refuse to defend him out of principle are you, Matt? 'Cause I don't know if you've noticed but we really _really_ need money and you know what? He has lots of it!"

"It would be nice if we could get a decent coffee machine in here, Matt," agreed Karen.

"Among a bajillion other things we need. C'mon, Murdock, don't screw this up on us."

"I'm not making any promises!" Matt called, heading back into the main office and shuffling away some of the papers that littered the desk. "Now are you going to spend the final minutes we have standing waiting like idiots or are you going to help me make this place look presentable?"

* * *

Tony Stark and Pepper Potts feel out of place in Matt's office. He's certain that they must look ridiculous, sitting in the plastic chairs Karen had picked up for a few dollars at a local yard sale. If the _eep_ from Karen when they walked through the door was anything to go by, they were probably dressed in personally tailored clothing that cost more to buy than the entire building they all currently sat in. He had never had much use for social media, but Matt had this suddenly burning itch to snap a photo of the pair in their bare surroundings and post it online. The backlash could be entertaining, even if he could not see the sight himself.

Sitting beside him, Foggy was on his best behaviour, manners that only the smell of money could buy from him. He _ooohed_ and _ahhhed_ in all the right places, sounding very understanding and accommodating as Ms Potts explained the sexual harassment suit they were facing. Matt for the most part remained quiet, smiling occasionally at Potts' diplomatic phrasing and ignoring the occasional lewd comment from her boss.

One particularly smarmy comment snaps Matt's cool politeness.

"We make it a point of defending the innocent here, Mr Stark."

"What's that supposed to mean?" replied Stark indignantly.

"Look," the man begins, stretching in his chair until he lounged across it in a lazy way. It's hard for Matt to reconcile this real life personification of Tony Stark with the _Iron Man_ who is considered a superhero, a saviour. "I'm aware that I have a, _questionable_ history with women and the tabloids, well they just _love_ to report every little touch or feel that I may or may not have had a part in, they have done since I was in the womb only then it was more acceptable for me to be touching the more…private parts of a lady."

"Tony," murmured Ms Potts through a smile, so low in volume that Matt doubted Foggy had caught her reprimand. There was the echo of a discreet foot tapping on the wooden floor of the office in what he decided was a threatening manner.

Stark did not hesitate nor react, landing a hand over where Matt suspected his heart to be with a loud thud and beginning to vomit words out once again. "This kind of case, the situation, yeah. It's the kind of thing _Old Tony_ would get in trouble for quite often. _Now Tony_ , this glorious bastard saw the errors of his ways and has been clean of this sort of activity for years."

"Does he always refer to himself in the third person?" asked Foggy of no one in particular, his hands shuffling absently with some of the documents laid out on the desk.

A small sigh answered him and Matt imagined that Ms Potts would have really liked to pinch the bridge of her nose in frustration if showing weakness in business was not beneath her. "More often than I'd like."

Stark snorted. "This is it exactly. Have you _seen_ this woman? Well, of course you haven't, Murdock. But if you could, see her that is, you would observe a radiant beauty bright enough to blind any man (to an even greater extent than you are now). Pepper Potts, the light of my life, my whole world, my-"

The chiding was hissed out in a tone so severe that both lawyers found themselves frozen in their seats, Foggy swallowing audibly. It did not appear to have the same effect on Stark, however, who merely smiled dazzling in the direction he was receiving the death glares from and blew several noisy kisses.

"You see gentlemen, and to your lovely secretary dropping eaves behind the door, since this incredible woman has entered my life (and especially my bed) I have had eyes for no one else. You can understand that, right?"

"As you have so astutely pointed out, vision is hardly my strength, Mr Stark." said Matt through gritted teeth.

"Ah but perhaps, young Simba, you need to work on your abilities to _feel_ the love in here right now-"

"Look, Mr Stark, Ms Potts." interrupted Foggy, receiving an encouraging nod from Ms Potts. "Not that we're not, like, extremely psyched to have you here and interested in _Nelson and Murdock_ because in all honesty we could really use a bit of cash at the moment. Or a lot."

" _Foggy_."

"But yeah, why are you actually here? You're Tony Stark! You're a billionaire! And Iron Man! Don't you have like a whole team of lawyers stashed away somewhere just waiting for you to screw up?"

"We have a whole legal team which we pay a lot of money for," admitted Potts, her pretty face twisting into a slight grimace. "It's an unavoidable expense in the corporate world in the twenty-first century, especially when your surname is _Stark._ "

"So why are you here?" inquired Matt, repeating his friend's question. He could not help but admire the way Potts' heart rate had not changed once since she'd entered the building and she did not hesitate to respond to him. He suspected that she would be a difficult enemy to have in the business world, mentally wincing at the thought of a stiletto heel to the chest.

"As you may have noticed, Tony has a particular way with people."

"Why, thank you, darling Pep-"

"The head of our usual team," she continued, ignoring her boyfriend's interference. "His mother has recently taken ill."

"She's on her last leg, literally. The woman has this absolutely _crazy_ history with-"

"Anyway, he's been in Kansas for the past three weeks and doesn't seem set to return anytime soon. The other more junior members of our legal have all actually either resigned or refused to work for Mr Stark in his absence."

"I can't imagine why."

"You know, either can I, Murdock, either can I."

"Obviously this case is just one of the more pressing of several we have to deal with in the coming weeks. We would like it resolved as quickly and as painlessly as possible. I'm sure you're aware of what they say about reputations, Mr Nelson and Mr Murdock."

"A lifetime to build, seconds to destroy." Matt quoted, allowing a sadistic little smile to slip onto his face.

"Yes, indeed."

"Still, why us? There are plenty of law firms in New York, many of them closer to your company's premises than having to track all the way to Hell's Kitchen. Most of them have far better reputations and experience than us as well."

"It's almost like you boys don't want good custom."

"Like I said earlier, Mr Stark, we like to make sure that we're defending the innocent and those who actually need and deserve help."

"And it's exactly that reason that brought us here, Mr Murdock," pressed Ms Potts. "You're firm may be new, but it is already gaining in reputation due to your help in the Fisk case. You have principle which can be difficult to find in those who work in law, and your name is clean. We at Stark Industries are a legitimate business with principles also, and we like to make sure that we're associated with the right kinds of people."

"You haven't always been in the past."

"Which is why it's so important to us to ensure that the future of our company is safe and secure. We've learned from that past, and recognise that we hold power that it potentially threatening to this planet. We're doing all we can to use it instead to protect it. That's why we need partners such as yourselves."

"You're very convincing, Ms Potts. I can see why Mr Stark hired you."

"Technically you _can't_ see exactly why I hired her, Murdock, but-"

"I've always said that I prefer it when people don't walk on eggshells around me but upon meeting you, Mr Stark, I think I've changed my mind. I'd rather the eggshells but I suppose it's something I'll have to get used to."

"You're accepting?"

"We're accepting?" echoed Foggy incredulously, a mere second after Ms Potts had asked. His breath held in his throat, awaiting confirmation from his partner.

"Probationally. And don't get us wrong, Mr Stark, it has nothing to do with you." Matt stood up from his chair and moved without trouble to stand in front of the seat he knew to hold Ms Potts. In a confident gesture, he reached down and took her left hand from where it rested in her lap. He raised it to his mouth, pressing a small kiss to the back of the palm before releasing it and moving away from her with a respectful nod of his head.

"Karen," he called out, ignoring the silence of the room and the probable gaping stares that were focused on him. "Please bring the paperwork for new clients in here and aid Ms Potts in filling it out."

He stepped out of the room as Karen barrelled in, flustered as she thrust his cane at him and carrying reams of paper. Matt could feel the heat off her cheeks when she blushed at a mutter from Stark about returning to the stone ages. Matt smiled and allowed the door to swing shut between them, moving off in the direction of the stairs with the intention of going to the café one block over for a huge hot chocolate-y treat. He started on the stairs, cane raised in one hand and chuckled in satisfaction when the words hit his ears.

"You know, for a blind guy he is really fucking smooth."

"Yeah, he's like that."


End file.
